Youssef El Kachati shone again for Telstar on Thursday evening in the first final match against Willem II (2-2). The 25-year-old striker will make a nice transfer after this season, but first wants to help the Velsen team to a historic promotion.
When El Kachati is taken off the field eight minutes before the end of the home game against Willem II, he turns to the main stand at the dug-out. The attacker applauds towards the Telstar fans, who chant his name en masse one last time.
The first leg in the play-off final is a farewell for El Kachati. The attacker, born in Leiden, played for the amateurs of Quick Boys two years ago, but has attracted the attention of major clubs this season. According to ESPN, Telstar’s top scorer is of interest to Celtic, Schalke 04 and Hannover 96, among others.
After the match against Willem II, El Kachati says that he is in talks with “several clubs” and that he “really wants” to play football abroad. “I think it is 100 percent certain that I will take a fantastic step this summer,” he says. “But first I want to leave something behind at Telstar so that they will never forget me.”
It is clear what El Kachati means by that. He wants to ensure that Telstar returns to the Eredivisie on Sunday in the return in Tilburg after 47 years. “I think it is very important that I finish my time here well,” he says. “If I can shoot Telstar to the Eredivisie, then I will do that.”
El Kachati has 23 goals this season
Interim trainer Kristof Aelbrecht of Willem II warned his players about the away match against Telstar. For the Velsen team, the match on Ascension Day was one of the most important in the club’s history. “I consciously included that in my story,” says the Belgian. “It was up to us to make this match just as important.”
That works quite well in the first half. The tightly sold-out 711 Stadion creates a special atmosphere from the first whistle, but Willem II has control and scores via Ringo Meerveld.
After the break, Telstar takes the initiative, with El Kachati as the driving force. The striker has an important role in the 1-1 (an own goal by Willem II defender Rúnar Sigurgeirsson) and scores the 2-1 himself. After a good pass from Danny Bakker, he rams the ball into the goal. “I think there is a hole in the net because of that shot,” jokes Telstar trainer Anthony Correia.
It is already El Kachati’s 23rd goal of this season, in 43 matches. And that after a significant detour in professional football. The striker made his debut in 2018 at Sparta, but did not break through there. He took a step back, played football with the amateurs of Noordwijk and Quick Boys and is now the standout player at a team that is one match away from the Eredivisie.
“I have always believed in myself,” says El Kachati. “I come from far, but I also draw strength from that. I know that I can score, at every club and in every system. If you rely on your own qualities, you will always get where you belong.”
Due to the late 2-2 from Willem II substitute Emilio Kehrer, Telstar is certainly not where the club wants to be yet. Nevertheless, there is hardly any disappointment to be seen after the match about the unnecessary draw.
“Of course it is a shame that we conceded another one, but I am too sober to say that it hurts,” says Correia.
The trainer knows that promotion fever in Velsen and the surrounding area will rise to great heights this week. “That is great, but at the moment I am not interested in that. We as players and staff must remain in our own bubble for three more days.”
El Kachati agrees with those words, even though there is a lot going on around him in the transfer area. “That is part of being a professional football player,” says the striker. “After Sunday I will probably quickly make a decision about my future. But now I still have a mission with Telstar.”